Healthcare workers rely on PPE (personal protective equipment) to protect themselves and their patients from being infected and infecting others.
But shortages are leaving doctors, nurses and other frontline workers dangerously ill-equipped to care for COVID-19 patients, and we can’t stop COVID-19 without protecting health workers first.
Thankfully, our Malaysian prison inmates are here to help to cope with the production of PPEs.
According to The Star, there are 18 prison inmates from Penor, Pahang have been working to produce PPEs for the medical staffs since March 27. In order to increase the production efficiently, They do measuring, cutting and stitching the material of PPEs from 9am – 5pm everyday.
“We can produce over 20 units daily that will then be sent to the Pahang state secretary office to be distributed to the state health department. “
“Currently, the workshop continues its operations on Saturdays and Sundays due to the urgent need for PPE following an increase in the number of Covid-19 positive cases, “ the Prison director Datuk Abu Hasan Hussain said.
Meanwhile, the Prison Women Staff and Wives of Prison Staff Association (Persiap) has also produced 525 face shields for the frontliners.
The workshop supervisor Sergeant Muhd Mulyadi Abd Ghani said that they had received orders of producing PPEs recently so the inmates put their effort in learning the skills of sewing.
“The most difficult part of the whole process is inserting elastic bands at the wrist, chin and shoe cover, ” he said.
Moreover, they will make sure that their production of PPEs was in accordance with standard operating procedure (SOP).
The inmates felt grateful for having the opportunity to contribute the society in this critical situation.
One of them said: “I know it is contagious, I am also proud to be able to help even in prison. My contribution is not great, but I hope it can help protect struggling medical personnel.”
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